Sanicula aqua

This remedy is prepared from the mineral-rich water of the Sanicula Springs in Ottawa, Illinois, discovered in the 19th century. The spring’s waters were famous for their curative effects, particularly in chronic and constitutional disorders. The remedy was introduced by Dr. W. E. Leonard and Dr. M. C. Peterson, who observed its deep action on developmental disorders, nutrition, and the musculoskeletal system. It is especially noted for its profound effects on children with deformities, weakness, and poor assimilation.

First proved by Dr. W. E. Leonard in the late 19th century; clinical confirmation by Dr. M. C. Peterson and others

Sanicula aqua is the remedy of arrested development, both physical and mental. Its picture is clear: children who are obstinate, underdeveloped, prone to discharges and deformities, with offensive smells and sour sweat. Their growth is slow; they walk late, speak late, teethe late, and yet show flashes of wilfulness. The body fails to assimilate, to mature, to function smoothly. Everything is off-rhythm, sluggish, or blocked—until the storm of sweat, discharges, or vomiting clears it. The remedy restores flow, growth, and equilibrium where suppression has stifled vitality.

• Bones and joints – spinal curvatures, club foot, hip dislocations
• Connective tissue – ligaments, cartilage, and fascia
• Gastrointestinal tract – assimilation, nutrition
• Skin and glands – eruptions, offensive discharges
• Respiratory tract – adenoids, enlarged tonsils, catarrh
• Mind – delayed mental development, stubbornness
• Urinary system – enuresis, offensive urine

Children exhibit stubborn, contrary behaviour, resisting caregivers or demands. Slowness in mental development, delayed speech, or comprehension. Alternation between obstinate silence and precocious speech. Aversion to change or correction. Easily offended, cries when spoken to gently. Fear of the dark, of falling, and being left alone. Restless, irritable, and sensitive to emotional tension around them. Children are self-willed but also physically weak, often exhausted after minimal effort.

Restless. Wakes crying out. Sleeps in knee-chest position or on abdomen. Enuresis in first sleep. Dreams of falling. Perspiration on scalp and neck during sleep. Tosses about, seeks cool spots on pillow.

Of falling, being chased, or drowning. Crying or moaning during sleep. Frightful dreams with sudden waking. Dreams of being left alone or punished.

Deep-acting remedy for developmental delay, nutritional deficiency, and constitutional weakness. Delayed closure of fontanelles, rickets, spinal deformities, and offensive discharges. Sweat profuse, with strong odour. Sensitive to cold, especially drafts. Worse from suppression of natural functions. Tendency to chronicity and stunted growth. Often indicated in children who are stubborn, backward, and weak despite good nutrition.

Fever in malnourished or dentition periods. Dry, burning heat with no thirst. Alternating chill and heat. Fever suppressed by bathing or cold. Offensive sweat follows.

Chill begins in extremities. Worse in damp, cold weather. Heat dry and intense in head. Sweat profuse, especially during sleep or from slight exertion. Sweat has strong, sour or musty odour.

Head disproportionately large in rickety children. Cranium hot and sweaty, especially at night, causing the pillow to become wet. Open fontanelles that persist too long. Scalp sensitive to cold air and washing. Hair falls easily or is sparse in children. Frequent headaches in school children, especially from mental exertion. Pressure at the base of the brain with visual disturbances.

Sensitive to light; pupils may appear dilated. Strabismus (squinting), particularly in weak or rickety children. Swelling of lids with inflammation of meibomian glands. Lachrymation from wind or cold. Vision blurred during growth spurts or with poor nutrition.

Chronic catarrh of the middle ear. Offensive, thick, yellow-green discharge. Hearing diminished due to recurrent infections or enlarged adenoids. Prone to glue ear. Earache with stitching or tearing pain, worse at night. Sensitive to drafts.

Chronic nasal catarrh with thick, offensive mucus. Children constantly picking nose or snorting. Enlarged adenoids causing nasal obstruction and mouth breathing. Loss of smell. Crusts form in nostrils. Nosebleeds common during fevers.

Pale, earthy, or sallow complexion in undernourished children. Emaciated with prominent bones. Face hot and red during fevers or tantrums. Sweat on forehead and upper lip during sleep. Expression alternates between dullness and alert cunning.

Foul odour from mouth, especially at night. Tongue coated white or yellowish. Ulcers at corners of the mouth or on the tongue. Difficulty articulating words; speech delayed. Salivation profuse during dentition. Dry mouth despite thirst.

Delayed dentition with crumbling teeth. Painful teething with irritability and diarrhoea. Teeth decay soon after eruption. Grinding of teeth at night. Gums pale, spongy, or ulcerated.

Enlarged tonsils and adenoids, interfering with breathing or swallowing. Sensation of a plug in the throat. Chronic catarrh with hawking of mucus. Voice hoarse and weak. Worse from cold air or damp rooms.

Chest weak and sunken in children. Tendency to chest colds and chronic bronchitis. Wheezing and catarrh with difficult expectoration. Oppression worse from lying flat. Emphysematous changes in the aged or debilitated.

Palpitation with weakness and dyspnoea. Pulse small, weak, and rapid. Cyanosis of lips and nails in cold or during crying. Heart murmurs in scrofulous children.

Mouth breathing due to enlarged adenoids. Snoring or rattling respiration during sleep. Dry, hacking cough. Suffocative attacks at night. Oppression of chest in damp or cold rooms.

Craving for salt, sugar, and indigestible things like chalk or dirt (pica). Nausea with offensive eructations. Vomiting relieves nausea. Poor assimilation despite adequate appetite. Emptiness in stomach not relieved by eating. Frequent regurgitation in infants.

Distension and gurgling with flatulence. Colic in infants, worse at night. Emaciation despite good appetite. Abdomen flabby, with poorly developed musculature. Worm infestations common. Enlarged mesenteric glands.

Constipation with hard, dry, crumbling stools. Stool expelled with difficulty despite normal desire. Offensive stool, often black or greenish in children. Diarrhoea in teething infants. Anal itching or fissures.

Constipation with hard, dry, crumbling stools. Stool expelled with difficulty despite normal desire. Offensive stool, often black or greenish in children. Diarrhoea in teething infants. Anal itching or fissures.

Craves salt, bacon, sweets, dirt, and chalk. Aversion to milk. Eating often relieves nausea. Desire for highly seasoned food. Diarrhoea after cold drinks.

Undescended testicles in boys. Genitalia small or underdeveloped. Sexual development delayed. Itching of scrotum or perineum. Emissions without sensation in adolescence.

Delayed menarche. Scanty, irregular menses. Vaginal discharge offensive and acrid. Poor development of breasts. Hypersensitive vulva. Menses may be suppressed by emotional excitement or cold.

Spinal curvature, especially lumbar lordosis or dorsal kyphosis. Spina bifida. Backache in children from weak musculature or deformity. Pain in sacrum, worse from pressure. Back sweaty during sleep.

Club foot, dislocations of hip, or poorly formed joints. Feet may seem too weak to support body. Children learn to walk late. Cracking in joints on movement. Cold, sweaty hands and feet. Nails brittle, deformed. Weak ankles and flat feet.

Dry, rough, and cold to touch. Sweat offensive, especially on head, feet, and genitals. Crusty eruptions in scalp and behind ears. Skin peels in fine scales. Unhealthy, ulcers take long to heal. Cracks in hands and feet.

• Calcarea phosphorica – Also for late walking, open fontanelles, but more craving for cold and ice, and more irritability
• Baryta carbonica – Mental and physical developmental delay, but more fearful, shy, and bashful
• Silicea – Sweaty head, slow development, but more obstinate, chilly, and fine-featured
• Tuberculinum – Emaciation, obstinate, restless children, but more destructive tendencies
• Medorrhinum – Enuresis, sweating, and tubercular history, but more extremes in behaviour
• Calcarea carbonica – Sweaty head, fat, sluggish children; Sanicula is leaner and more offensive in discharges

• Complementary: Calc. phos., Silicea
• Antidotes: Pulsatilla, Nux vomica
• Follows well: Baryta carb., Sulphur
• Inimical: Mercurius (can interfere when given during eruptive suppression)

• One of the best remedies for developmental delay in children with structural or nutritional problems
• Use in enuresis, especially when it occurs in the first sleep
• Effective in chronic adenoid and tonsil hypertrophy with nasal obstruction
• Useful in club foot or hip dislocations in infancy
• Consider in constitutional prescribing for lean, offensive, obstinate children with delayed milestones

Mind

• Stubbornness, children
• Development, delayed
• Irritability in children
• Fear of dark

Head

• Fontanelles, open too long
• Sweat, head, during sleep

Extremities

• Club foot
• Dislocation, hip
• Weak ankles
• Sweaty feet, offensive

Urinary

• Enuresis, first sleep
• Offensive urine
• Staining urine

Skin

• Offensive sweat
• Cracks in hands and feet
• Unhealthy skin, slow healing

Generalities

• Delayed development
• Worse from suppression
• Better from vomiting
• Sweaty children

Mind

• Stubbornness, children
• Development, delayed
• Irritability in children
• Fear of dark

Head

• Fontanelles, open too long
• Sweat, head, during sleep

Extremities

• Club foot
• Dislocation, hip
• Weak ankles
• Sweaty feet, offensive

Urinary

• Enuresis, first sleep
• Offensive urine
• Staining urine

Skin

• Offensive sweat
• Cracks in hands and feet
• Unhealthy skin, slow healing

Generalities

• Delayed development
• Worse from suppression
• Better from vomiting
• Sweaty children